PNGs on loader screen and loader screen resizing

**Konrad** · 06-30-2009, 02:34 AM

Just found out that the loader screen doesn't work with PNGs.
Can it be changed, that the loader screen also supports PNGs and backgrounds ?

Also, the loading screen doesn't scale accordingly to the general.ini of the skin file. If I have an 800x480 skin and viewsize for RR is 800x600, the skin resizes properly, but not the loader screen.
Checked this the last time with an older version, though. But didn't find anything in the changelogs of newer versions, so I guess it's still in.

How many dumb requests remaining, till I get annoying

?

**Blue ZX3** · 06-30-2009, 10:45 AM

Originally Posted by Konrad

Just found out that the loader screen doesn't work with PNGs.
Can it be changed, that the loader screen also supports PNGs and backgrounds ?

Tough call on that request... the loader screen is done way early in the loading process...among the first besides reading ini files

Originally Posted by Konrad

Also, the loading screen doesn't scale accordingly to the general.ini of the skin file. If I have an 800x480 skin and viewsize for RR is 800x600, the skin resizes properly, but not the loader screen.

Do-able ...

**Enforcer** · 06-30-2009, 11:09 AM

Maybe have a preloading splash screen then a loading screen once the bits needed to be able to provide the PNGs and backgrounds.

**mitchjs** · 06-30-2009, 06:58 PM

keep in mind, pngs are NOT supported by VB6, i bet they didnt exist when VB6 was 1st out

png support is handled via GDI

**Enforcer** · 06-30-2009, 07:55 PM

hence the preloading screen while you get the GDI dll on board and then the full loading screen once it's there.

**Blue ZX3** · 06-30-2009, 08:21 PM

Ya, you didn't know back in the vb6 eara ( '98 ), they would have had to ask you wtf you were talking about if you asked em to send over the png files....

**Konrad** · 07-01-2009, 02:35 AM

I guess the GDI loading is pretty early (correct me if I'm wrong). What takes the most time is preloading screens and starting winamp. The rest is rather instantly. So I guess it would be enough if the loader screen ist just shown after loading GDI, don't you think ?

**EL CAMINO** · 07-01-2009, 10:24 PM

i use this custom loader, what it does is, plays a flash movie on top of RR, until RR is fully loaded.

**guino** · 07-02-2009, 09:04 AM

The purpose for the loader screen is to provide some user feedback while loading the other components of the software. It does not resize by general.ini and does not support PNG files because it would require some extra processing (which would increase the loading time). The loader screen DOES RESIZE -- but according to the size of the image specified for it. This screen is very lightweight and very limited, exactly so there's no discussion and/or insinuations that it could "increase" the loading time of the software... so while adding those features is possible, I wouldn't recommend it -- or at the most, add them as an option so they would work (and affect the loading time) only when they're used.

**Sal R.** · 07-02-2009, 09:15 AM

Well, if you really want the splash screen to update w/ the skins background, I put together a script to do just that. I use it in my skin to make images not supported by GDI+ in RR.

The script makes combines menu_OFF.png, cdrip_OFF.png, cdrip_ON.png, cdrip_DOWN.png, and loader.png with the $background$ variable to make:

menu_OFF.jpg
cdrip_OFF.jpg
cdrip_ON.jpg
cdrip_DOWN.jpg
loader.bmp

The script will communicate with RR to make a copy of the image specified by $background$ and make a resized copy (800x600) in $skinpath$support\ folder then merge them w/ the png's listed above.